16GB VRAM GPUs overtake 8GB in latest Steam survey, and 8-core CPUs are now more popular than 6-core
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Valve has released the results of its latest Steam Hardware & Software Survey, and the July data shows two important milestones for PC gaming hardware. For the first time, graphics cards with 16GB of VRAM have become more common than 8GB models among surveyed Steam users. At the same time, 8-core processors have also moved ahead of 6-core CPUs.
The latest survey shows that systems with 16GB of VRAM now account for 25.90% of all surveyed users, compared to 25.32% for 8GB graphics cards. It’s a small margin, but it marks a significant change after years of 8GB GPUs dominating the Steam charts. The shift likely reflects the growing popularity of newer graphics cards that ship with 16GB of memory, especially as more gamers upgrade their older hardware.
A similar trend can be seen on the processor side. 8-core CPUs now make up 27.85% of surveyed systems, narrowly overtaking 6-core processors, which account for 27.52%. While the difference is only a fraction of a percentage point, it suggests that more PC gamers are moving to processors that offer additional cores for modern games and multitasking.
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It’s worth noting that these figures include Steam users across Windows, macOS, and Linux. If you look only at Windows systems, the picture is slightly different. There, 6-core processors remain the most common at 28.43%, while 8GB VRAM graphics cards still lead with 33.20% of users.
Even still, the uptick in 16GB graphics cards reflects sales data we’ve seen all generation long, with 16GB cards outselling their 8GB counterparts (in the case of the RTX 5060 Ti and RX 9060 XT, which offer both memory capacities). On the CPU side of things, the rise in 8-core CPUs reflects the massive popularity of AMD’s Ryzen 7 chips, particularly the likes of the 7800X3D and 9800X3D for those upgrading to AM5. Even the AM4-based 5800X3D was rereleased lately with a special Anniversary Edition.
Other highlights in the July Steam Survey
The survey also highlights several other interesting trends. Windows 11 64-bit remains the most popular operating system on Steam, accounting for 70.26% of all surveyed users. Meanwhile, 16GB of system RAM continues to be the most common memory configuration, with 40.97% of users. As for graphics cards, the GeForce RTX 3060 continues to hold the top spot as the most popular GPU on Steam, representing 3.71% of surveyed systems.
That said, while the Steam Hardware & Software Survey is optional and only samples a portion of Steam users each month, it remains one of the best indicators of hardware trends in the PC gaming market. For game developers, these changes are especially important, as they help determine the types of hardware that should be targeted when optimizing new titles. The latest results suggest that higher VRAM capacities and 8-core processors are becoming increasingly common, even if they haven’t fully taken over on Windows systems just yet.
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